Variables in Python

Introduction

Numbers and character strings are important data types in any Python program

• These are the fundamental building blocks we use to build more complex data structures.

Variables

A variable is a named storage location in a computer program.

1. There are many different types of variables, each type used to store different things.
2. You ‘define’ a variable by telling the compiler:
1. What name you will use to refer to it.
2. The initial value of the variable.
3. You use an assignment statement (=) to place a value into a variable.

Variable Definition

To define a variable, you must specify an initial value.

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The assignment statement

1. Use the assignment statement '=' to place a new value into a variable cansPerPack = 6 # define & initializes the variable cansPerPack
2. The left-hand side of an assignment statement consists of a variable
3. The right-hand side is an expression that has a value
4. Beware: The “=“ sign is NOT used for comparison:
1. It copies the value on the right side into the variable on the left side
2. You will learn about the comparison operator in the next chapter

Assignment syntax

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Why different types?